#164: CanCon Game 2 Battle Report - Beasts of Chaos Vs. Legions of Nagash

Coming off a squeaky win in Round One of CanCon, I knew that I was going to be in the thick of it with all the other winners. I was hoping to come up against another player who had scraped a win, and get a favourable matchup. This was not to be.

When I arrived at my table, I was both overjoyed and filled with dread. I was facing Michael "Rockhampton" Thompson. Fantastic! He's a top bloke, and I'd been to several events where we had never ended up facing. The dread part came from his army list...

Allegiance: Grand Host of Nagash
Mortal Realm: Not Specified

Leaders
Nagash Supreme Lord Of The Undead (800) - General
Necromancer (110)
Guardian of Souls with Mortality Glass (140) - Artefact: Balefire Lantern

Units
5 x Dire Wolves (60)
5 x Dire Wolves (60)
5 x Dire Wolves (60)
30 x Grimghast Reapers (360)
20 x Grimghast Reapers (280)

Endless Spells
Quicksilver Swords (20)
Umbral Spellportal (60)

Total: 1950 / 2000
Extra Command Points: 1
Allies: 0 / 400

 Now, I'd played a lot of practice games against mass Reapers, and it was a hard slog. I knew that I was gonna be in for a brutal fight, and that the odds were against me, but the scenario was A Better Part of Valour. That was my glimmer of hope. I had an army that could potentially rush across the board and burn objectives from under Michael's nose. And when that idea crossed my mind, i locked into that battle plan!

Basing my game plan around the questionable strategy called "Fools Rush In", I launched my entire army across the table in an attempt to get the jump on Michael before Nagahs could debuff my army into the dirt. Now, I think I made a critical error in taking first turn, as I could have easily wasted Michael's first turn and still gotten the same results. I would have been outside of most of Nagash's spells, and wouldn't have been risking a double turn coming back at me. But hindsight is a beautiful thing. My Spawn both made mammoth runs (16" and 17" on 3d6), and I charged on in, dropping CP left, right and centre. 

Where I think I went wrong was in taking on both units at once. I really should have launched both Bestigor into one unit of Reapers, flooded the objective, and burnt it. As it was, I managed to kill a fair few Reapers out of both units, but not enough to cap either objective. 

My one saving grace was on my left flank. I managed to launch up the board with my Enlightened, and blend a few dogs to burn Michael's objective on my left. I was careful to approach the dogs from the far end, as the Guardian of Souls with Mortality Glass is a hero I've had experience facing. His charge debuff is crippling, so I made sure to stay outside of 9" of him in my charge phase. 

At this point, I'd fully realised the series of mistakes that I'd made, as Michael claimed a double turn, and put down a monumental chunk of my army. Both units of Bestigor had melted, Spawn were popping everywhere, and the inevitable march on my objectives began.

The highlight of the game came when Nagash popped a Spellportal up next to my Shaggoth and turned him to ash! To add insult to injury, he rolled a 1 when trying to turn into a Spawn. Oh, dear...

The rest of the game was largely one-sided, as I'd lost all of my heavy hitters and was now faced with a wall of Reapers clearing the table of Beasts. Michael ended up claiming a crushing Major Victory with 1900 Kill Points. 

So, where did it all go wrong? 

I think it's easy to hide behind the "bad matchup" and not take responsibility for mistakes, because I've got to be blunt... I made a few. I think there was definitely an avenue down which I could have gone that could end in victory. Sending the Bestigor in at all in the early game was a bit of a waste, as they didn't achieve anything other than dying. I made the right call sending the Discs in on the left flank and burning the objective from under the dogs, but I should have sent only them in, and kept my hammers back for later in the game, when I could summon in more bodies. This would have left a powerful unit in the Discs on a tactically unimportant flank, not worth committing huge resources to killing as they didn't have an objective, but impossible to ignore. Their speed and killing power makes them a huge threat. I went about this scenario wrong and it showed.

Now, despite all my hindsight and newfound tactical acumen in the light of my mistakes, I don't want to take anything away from my opponent. He flat out beat me fair and square, took full advantage of my mistakes, and played the scenario to perfection. To put it in perspective, Michael went on to podium the event, so at no point was his skill or strength on the table in question. 

It was a hilarious game from start to finish, and I'd play Michael again in a heartbeat.

This left me on one major win and one major loss going into Round Three, where I faced one of the gentlemen from Measured Gaming! Catch you then for another Battle Report.

Thanks for reading, 

Gabe

#161: RCGT - Game 5 Battle Report and Event Wrap-Up - Maggotkin of Nurgle Vs. Grand Host of Nagash - Better Part of Valour

Upon reaching my final game with a 3-1 track record, I was stoked to be facing Tim as my last opponent. His army, however, was going to give me a real tough time. Here's what I was facing.

Grand Host of Nagash

Nagash (General)

Arkhan the Black

Vampire Lord on Zombie Dragon (Ethereal Amulet)

10 Dire Wolves (Battleline)

10 Dire Wolves (Battleline)

5 Dire Wolves (Battleline)

5 Dire Wolves (Battleline)

10 Hexwraiths

Geminids of Uhl-Gysh

Soulsnare Shackles

Mortalis Terminexus

Vault of Souls

Lots of dogs, and wizards that were far superior to mine in every way... Alright. 

The scenario was Better Part of Valour, so I knew that I was in with a change, even against the arcane might of Nagash and Arkhan. This game would be won or lost very early on. I was confident in holding my objectives pretty securely, but the test would be if I had enough punch to flood any of his objectives and burn them.

I stacked my right side with bodies, to make sure that I at least held them for most of the game. The Pusgoyles were atop the hill, in range of both the Bell and the Lord of Afflictions, giving them the speed they need to hit just about anywhere on the board. And on my left objective, Festus was protected by the Blight Kings and the second Jabberslythe. That was definitely my weak side, but I had every intention of burning it early, and consolidating onto my centre and right objectives. 

With most of his spells out of range, Tim chose to give me the first turn, which I gladly accepted.

They say the best defence is a good offence. So, I pushede with almost my entire army. The Great Unclean One sat back out of range of Hand of Dust, and the Lord of Blights on the hill summoned five Plaguebearers on the right objective, but just about everything else pushed up. The Pusgoyles barrelled across the field to punch Nagash right in his big skully face, which in hindsight was a mistake. I feel like they would have been better used to attack the right flank, butcher the dogs and burn that objective. But there was an opening in his lines, and I took it. With any luck, I could slice a few wounds off him! Besides, I didn't need to KILL the dogs. Just outnumber them. And I was confident the Plaguebearers were up for the task. They would have possibly done it too, but I bombed the charge roll against the dogs, meaning that I couldn't even attempt a sneaky pile in onto it. 

The Pusgoyles put a dent in Nagash, putting a handful of wounds through, but not enough to have any meaningful impact. 

On the left, I made a critical error. I pushed the Jabberslythe all the way up the board, rather than keeping him in the back pocket to threaten and deter the Zombie Dragon, as well as be another body to contest. Instead, he was left standing in the middle of nowhere, being no real danger to anyone. This left my objective dangerously exposed. 

As if to prove my point, my left flank completely collapsed in Tim's first turn. The Jabberslythe died a horrible death, Hexwraiths were summoned from the grave, and the Zombie Lord rolled hot and killed three Blight Kings, claiming the objective in the process. Festus knew what was about to happen. 

In the centre, the sheer magical might of Nagash could not be denied. He debuffed the Pusgoyles into the ground, and had hoped to cause major problems by Hand of Dusting one of the middle models, breaking coherency. Luckily for me, I picked the correct hand, much to his frustration. Arkhan then decided to join in the fight, while all the dogs moved to shield against the Plaguebearers. The Pusgoyles, while not killing anything, flat out refused to take damage, shrugging off enough wounds to wipe out the unit, leaving two alive when there realistically should have been none. Tim had made a critical error, however, as only Nagash was in range of the centre objective after the movement phase. If I won priority going into turn two, I could retreat from combat, fly over the heads of the Death lords, and burn it! A fool proof plan...

...Unless, of course, I got double turned. Nagash continued a terrifying trend of double casting almost all of his spells, but once again, I saved my Lord of Afflictions from Hand of Dust through sheer luck of the guess. This didn't change much, however. The Pusgoyles finally fell to Nagash's blade and Arkhan's staff. Festus was slaughtered, and the Zombie Dragon and Hexwraiths began their sweep behind my lines. And between the dogs and endless spells, my Plaguebearers were left with nowhere to go, and barely the ability to fight thanks to spells and Geminids.

With victory all but assured, Tim began to tighten the net. Dogs ran to within range of the GUO's objective and burnt it from underneath him, and he was left to ponder his fate, as Nagash advanced upon him to deliver the coup-de-grace. From this point onward, Tim was in it to rack up a huge kill point tally. I didn't think the Death army had too much killing power without Morghasts of Grimghasts, but boy, did Tim prove me wrong. I suffered horrific casualties, and bled huge chunks kill points to the end. 

What started out as a high-stakes gambling match from my side really did not end well. In hindsight, I made some critical errors, but it was an exceptionally fun game to end the weekend on. The bloodbath meant that we actually had a pretty relaxed game that didn't feel rushed, and we got a chance to wander around afterward and catch the tail end of everyone else's game.  

Finishing the weekend on 3 Major Wins and 2 Major Losses, my Sports, Painting and Kill Points put me at 13th overall out of 42 players, which I was thrilled with. My goal was to go at least 3-2, and I'd managed to hit that goal on day one. 

I think the biggest challenge at the event was, of course, the schedule. The rounds were only two and a half hours long, which, when you're playing 2500 points, just isn't enough. Fortunately, I wasn't affected as much as some people were. The games that I won were decisively strong victories, and the games that I lost, I got mauled in the first two turns. This is something that is being addressed next year, under the new TO's, however, and I will be attending the event again, for sure. 

Despite the time challenges, I had a great event, and thoroughly enjoyed all of my games, no matter how nail-biting some of them were. All five of my opponents had put a ton of effort into their armies, and it made for a great weekend of fun and dice-rolling. I got to drink good drink, eat good food, and meet a bunch of people who I've only ever known as a name on Facebook, so it was great to meet everyone. 

Thanks for reading,

Gabe

#140: Tale of Four Gamers - 1000 Point Mark

Well, it's been another frantic month of painting for myself and my three adversaries, with some stunning results! After last month's "First 500", two of the participants have changed armies completely, but not wasted any time in making up for the lost time. So without too much more waffling on, here are the four armies at the end of month two!

Gabriel:

I'll get mine out of the way first.

Now, the first thing you're probably noticing is that my army is not quite 1000 points yet... Far from it, in fact. I only managed to hit 700 points fully painted this month, with another twenty Ard Boys on the painting desk to fill out the unit to thirty. I did, however, add a Warchanter and three Gore-Gruntas to the army!

I actually really enjoyed painting the Gruntas. They're probably my favourite models from the range so far, mostly because they offer a little variety in textures and colours that the armour-clad infantry just don't have. They also have nice big armour panels to allow me to practice more freehand and get those tags and strips down to a fine art. The two "rank and file" piggies are also awaiting their shoulder pads, complete with weathering and freehand, but... well... it was a slow month on the Ironjawz front. What this means is, I've got a LOT to paint next month to keep the pace! 

Liam:

Having started the challenge optimistically with Brayherd, Liam quickly realised that a horde army may not have been the wisest choice considering the time constraints. And so he made the bold move to go back to the drawing board, and start a brand new army from scratch. 

While it's undeniably character-heavy at this stage, considering the timeframe, I don't think anyone is holding that against him! Packing in two units of Blight Kings, this mortal Nurgle force is playing no games. A Rotbringer Sorcerer, Lord of Plagues and Gutrot Spume make a formidable bodyguard for Kazyk the Befouled...

...and some muscle was added to the list with this trio of Plague Ogres! Leaning heavily into some of the less common elements of Nurgle, I can't wait to see what Liam comes up with next month! It's sure to be suitably revolting.

Alistair:

Having also jumped ship for calmer seas, Al left Stormcast in his wake to work on a hyper-aggressive Idoneth army. With the intricate model range matching Al's impressive skills with the brush, it's no wonder that these have turned out incredibly. There are more eels than you can poke a harpoon at, and the shipwrecks have come up a treat. 

But without question, the Eidolon of Mathlaan is the centrepiece of his entire army. 

He's absolutely done the model justice, and it's going to look amazing leading the charge from the depths to pillage and raid the land of the dry. 

Blake:

Leading the challenge without question, Blake has added yet another amazing conversion to his Death army in the form of a towering Scarab Beetle, adorned with skulls and burdened with a Casket of Souls. 

In game, he's using it as a Mortis Engine, and no one is complaining. The model itself is both morbid and majestic, and fits the style of his army perfectly. He's also added two Dreadblade Harrows, heavily converted to fit the aesthetic, as well as another ten skeletons to give him his minimum requirements for battleline. 

The army of Death is growing at an alarming rate, and now that the armies are getting to the size where they can take to the battlefield, I dare say more than a few skulls will be claimed for Nagash yet.

I hope you enjoyed a peek at the armies as they prepare for war. Which is your favourite, and what two forces do you want to see face off first? 

Thanks for reading,

Gabriel

#119: Unlocking your true Portent-ial (WARNING: Puns ahead)

What is even happening?

We're a month into the year, and already, we are on the brink of a global narrative campaign, we're about to have Legions of Nagash unleashed upon the game, and Daughters of Khaine are coming in hot after that.

So yeah... its going to be a big year for Age of Sigmar, and we're only a month in. Looking back to last year, where Stormcast, Tzeentch, Khorne and Overlords got a Battletome update, it feels like this year is going to be dedicated to either new armies, or revamping (eh? re-VAMP-ing? get it!) older, neglected factions that didn't receive the love they deserved in the General's Handbook.

Legions of Nagash was a little bit of a surprise to me. I mean, we all knew there was going to be a Death Battletome eventually, but I was fully expecting it to be an expansion upon Deathrattle into a filled out faction with perhaps some new kits, or even giving Deadwalkers some love (because we all know Zombie Giants would be amazing!). But instead, GW has essentially released a Battletome for the entire Grand Alliance, with the exception of Flesh Eater Courts, who fill the Allies role for LoN.

Legions is almost the best case scenario (almost, but more on that later) for Death Players. Let's be real; the majority of Death Players were playing Grand Alliance Death anyway. There are, of course, plenty of FEC players, and new life was breathed into certain factions (these puns are coming thick and fast today, and I make no apologies) with the GHB17, but competitively, mixed Death seemed to be the strongest and most viable. I'm personally not a Death player, so correct me if I'm wrong in any of this. The combining of the armies means that so many models have launched back into the category of viable! I see this as being fantastic, and very themed, as you can now build one of several legions with all of the flexibility you desire.

The reason that I say 'almost the best case scenario' is because of one thing. The Knight of Shrouds.

"But, Gabe," I hear you say. "How is a new, awesome model with awesome rules a bad thing?".

That's exactly it. He's the only one. That character model is the first Death model to be released for the entire Grand Alliance since the birth of AOS, and while I know Death got lots of new models during the End Times, it's still disproportionate to literally every other Grand Alliance! Even the Ironjawz release had a heap of new models.

Don't get me wrong... the model is amazing! Not only is he a total bad ass model, but he fills the gaping General-shaped hole in a Nighthaunt army. No longer is your army led by a low-wound character with no command ability. He synergizes perfectly with the army, and I'm expecting to see him in every Nighthaunt army at every points level. That said, I'm interested to see where those minor GHB17 factions lie in regards to the Legions. Will they just become redundant in the shadow of the new Battletome, or will they have a niche spot? Time will tell.

Speaking of new models, the four new characters coming out look amazing! The Knight of Shrouds is stunning, and suitably creepy! His ominous helm and ancient longsword give him an air of terror that perfectly suits the Death aesthetic.

The Lord-Ordinator is a bit of an unusual one. I think a lot of people were hoping it would be an elf or a dwarf (even a human) instead of a Stormcast hero, this is probably the least Stormcast-y SCE model we've seen yet. Instead of the traditional head-to-toe plate armour, he's bare-armed and bareheaded, and his role as an engineer is clear just by looking at him. He wears robes and is adorned with tools and instruments of his trade. The duel-weilded hammers are also very reminiscent of Warrior Priests of the wold that was. I personally love this new direction, as well as his synergy and support role with war machines. I do think it's interesting to see a character dedicated to 'War Machines' specifically. We've not seen a model with the War Machine keyword released since the dawn of AOS, but I hope it's a unit type that we see return to the game with new models, no matter what race it's for. There's something awesome about crewed war machines raining death from afar!

The Darkaoth Warqueen is absolutely amazing as a model! Her beauty is perfectly balanced with the raw aggression present in the pose and the armament of the model. I can see this model being the foundation for perhaps a Valkia conversion, or simply as a stand alone character. I'm hoping that she and the Darkoath Cheiftain are glimpses of a more fleshed out faction in the future, that encompasses the Marauder aspect of the Chaos faction, steering away from the "viking" look and more toward  a barbarian aesthetic. A guy can dream, right?

Lastly, and by far the most exciting in my mind, is the Fungoid Cave Shaman. Moonclan Grots, while a much-beloved faction, have been scraping out a path to survival in the game since well before End Times. And while the range is fairly broad (when you include all of the Squigs and Forge World models), it was one of the surprise omissions from the GHB17. This came as quite a surprise to everyone, but hopefully this is a good thing. The Cave Shaman is very blatantly a Moonclan Grot, but the design is very different; hopefully a sign of things to come. While he's adorned in black robes, wields a sickle and has cresent moon icons like every other Shaman before him, there's no mistaking that he's decidedly higher-fantasy than his predecessors. from the weird brain-squig to the critter on his staff, the vials and pouches to the mushrooms growing on him, he looks far more "fantasy" than any other goblin released so far.

I'm hoping that these characters are heralds of future releases. I'd be totally OK with new Moonclan, Darkoath and Stormcast Engineers! Give me a Stormcast ballista... I'd be all over that!

And I haven't even mentioned the new Daughters of Khaine, yet! I did a full piece on looking at why no one was playing them in issue #108. And let's jsut say, judging by the hype, people are gonna be playing them left, right and centre! But that's a whole topic for another blog!

In summary, I can't wait to get my hands on the new books coming out on Saturday. Malign Portents is shaping up to be a huge story arc, and another big advancement in the Age of Sigmar. I think between this and Daughters, we're about to see a huge shake up of the game (again!), and I dunno about you but I can't wait. The game is always shifting and advancing, and it shows in everyone's face. We're all excited for every release, and Death has been coming a long way off! I hope it pleases the masses, as I think the book alone will give new life (you thought I was done with the puns, didn't you...) to an old, but beautiful range of models!

Are you jumping aboard the Death train or will you wait for the angriest ladies in all the realms?

Thanks for reading,
Gabe